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Post-fire rockfall and debris-flow hazard zonation in the Eagle Creek fire burn area, Columbia River Gorge, Oregon: a tool for emergency managers and first responders
Calhoun, N. C. Burns, W. J. Hay, S. Staley, D. M. Kean, J. W.
Calhoun, N. C.
Burns, W. J.
Hay, S.
Staley, D. M.
Kean, J. W.
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2019
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Abstract
The Eagle Creek Fire burned 48,832 acres (196 km2) of steep, heavily forested terrain along the Columbia River Gorge, Oregon, from September 2nd to November 30th, 2017. The Columbia River Gorge is a critical lifeline for Oregon and Washington, including Interstate Highway 84 (I-84), State Route 14 (SR-14), commercial train lines, a shipping corridor, major pipelines, and hydroelectric dams. The Gorge is also a major tourist destination and home to thousands of permanent residents. Before the Eagle Creek Fire, there was significant landslide and debris-flow hazard in the Gorge due to the steep topography and high annual precipitation (>254 cm). More than 80 landslides have been recorded in the Gorge during the last ~100 years, with 58 of these recorded in the exceptionally wet and stormy winters of 1996 and 1997. Several of these landslides damaged property, temporarily closed I-84, and interrupted train and ship traffic. There is some uncertainty on the degree to which the fire will enhance debris-flow susceptibility, because the climate, terrain and geology is different from the regions where most post-fire debris-flow research has been conducted. A large portion of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, including popular hiking trails, remains closed 18 months after the fire, and the Historic Columbia River Highway was closed for 14 months after the fire. In the aftermath of the Eagle Creek Fire, emergency managers and first responders identified the critical need for a post-fire landslide response plan and hazard map. To help meet this need, the Oregon Department of Transportation, the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, and the U.S. Geological Survey created a landslide hazard map that combined knowledge of pre-fire landslide activity and post-fire debris-flow susceptibility. We describe how this map was created and briefly touch on how this map was integrated into the post-fire response planning.
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